1. Field
The present invention relates to a method and system providing the capability for a wireless network carrier to track and monitor content applications (pods) that are accessed by, and billed to, users of the wireless network carrier, and to control access to such content applications (pods) based on selectable criteria for the performance and user-based feedback related to each content application (pod).
2. Background
The invention described in commonly-owned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/516,921, entitled “Automated Mobile Phone Billing and Distribution Platform for Application Providers,” (the “'921 application”), is directed to a method and platform through which content application providers can easily and automatically connect to a common platform in order to offer access and use of their network-enabled applications (pods) to a global community of mobile phone users through a variety of different mediums, while automatically charging the user for use of the application through the user's billing account with the wireless network carrier to which the user subscribes. In this manner, the community platform described in the '921 application allows an application provider to commercially offer an application to a community of mobile phone users without the need for the application provider to have a contractual agreement with any of the wireless network carriers to which the mobile phone users respectively subscribe. Furthermore, the platform described in the '921 application provides application (pod) providers a simple and automatic way to register and present their applications for access, purchase and use by the global community by registering the applications in an automatic fashion that eliminates the need for a lengthy registration processing involving multiple layers of people and procedures.
According to the platform and methods described in the '921 application, an application provider can write an application pod and then register the pod with the community platform for automatic access to a community of mobile phone users via various wireless network carriers. For example, an application provider may design and develop an application pod that allows a user to view current stock prices for selected stocks in which the user is interested. The application provider would then register the completed “stock price” application pod with the community platform, after which the pod would be available for access, purchase and use by all mobile phone users that are members of the community. A mobile phone user could then subscribe to use the “stock price” application pod through the community platform, after which the user could access and use the pod to check stock prices from within a typical web browser on a computer or on the user's mobile phone. As mentioned above with respect to the '921 application, the community platform automatically charges the user for use of (subscription to) the application pod through the user's existing billing account with the wireless network carrier to which the user subscribes.
Sometimes, difficulties arise with the access and use of third-party application pods by users of a wireless network carrier, whether through the internet or through the user's mobile phone, because the third-party application pods offered for billing through the wireless network carrier may have various, inconsistent types of pricing models. This results in lack of clarity to a user of such pods, thereby leading to unexpected and/or unwanted billed charges on the user's account with the wireless network carrier. Also, some third-party application pods may not deliver the service or product that was expected when the user agreed to pay for (opt in to) the application pod. These problems can cost the wireless network carrier a substantial amount of time and money to deal with. For example, the wireless network carrier may need to handle a large volume of user complaints regarding the billing methods and the quality of certain third-party application pods that are billed to users through the wireless network carrier. Furthermore, these complaints may lead to the wireless network carrier having to credit substantial amounts to users' bills in order to offset billing by third-party application pods that have applied unclear and inconsistent pricing models and which have delivered low quality product/services to users, or none at all.
In addition, the delivery of low quality product/service and the unexpected billing to the user's accounts by various third-party application pods may provide a bad image to the wireless network carrier through which such application pods are offered, and may lead users to cancel their service account with that wireless network carrier and subscribe to another wireless network carrier. In order for a wireless network carrier to proactively monitor the billing practices and the quality of content provided by the numerous and various third-party application pods offered through the wireless network carrier, the wireless network carrier would have to constantly review the pricing model offered by each application pod and also constantly review the content provided by each application pod to determine whether the application pod is providing content (product or service) of an acceptable quality to users of the wireless network carrier.
Proactive monitoring of all third-party application pods offered through the wireless network carrier can cost significant expenditures of manpower and money by the wireless network carrier. Also, when “problem” third-party application pods are identified, the wireless network carrier would need to deal individually with each third-party that operates the application pod to convince them to remedy the problem, or then cancel the access and use of the third-party application pod through the wireless network carrier, which also requires significant time and expense on the part of the wireless network carrier.
Accordingly, a wireless network carrier needs a way to easily and efficiently monitor third-party content applications (pods) that are accessed by, and billed to, users of the wireless network carrier, and to control access to such third-party content applications (pods) based on selectable criteria for the performance and quality of each content application (pod).